Exploring the practice of teacher-AI collaboration among language teachers: a current state of practice

Abstract

This study explored how language teachers in Thailand currently collaborate with AI tools in various aspects of their teaching practices. It also examined digital competencies and pedagogical knowledge required to collaborate effectively with AI tools. Data were collected from language teachers currently teaching in schools and universities in Thailand (N = 672). Data were collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed differentiated patterns of teacher-AI collaboration across instructional domains. While most teachers reported regular collaboration with AI tools for learning material development and class preparation, such collaboration was considerably less frequent in the contexts of in-class teaching and assessment. Importantly, prompting literacy and critical evaluation were seen as important digital competencies for teachers to collaborate effectively with AI. The findings suggest that language teaching is a dynamic process in which human teachers and AI tools assume different and complementary roles across various stages of instruction. Future studies that analyse how teachers actually interact with AI and assess the products of such collaboration are recommended.